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Easter Bombs

Posted on:16 April 2017

By:Chris Strevel

Today is Easter, and bombs are falling. The forecast is for more bombs. “I am for peace, but when I speak, they are for war” (Ps. 120:7). There is a great deal of profit in war. Follow the money first – then the control, the oil, and the face. Westerners do not understand that Asian cultures are all about “saving face.” Some call it personal honor, but I fail to see the honor in starving one’s people to build bombs. I also fail to see honor in our leaders borrowing money to build bombs. There is no honor among thieves, whatever flag they are waiving.

For a century now, our nation has assumed the role of world policeman – the more backwards part of the world we think we can control. We would never dare assume this role toward China, who owns the socks in our drawers, or Russia, which is a convenient boogeyman to whip up patriotic frenzy at home – too much Rocky IV and too little reading of the speeches of the other side. Too many millions of jobs and trillions of dollars are dedicated to “American interests abroad” for politicians, generals, and unelected conspirators and financiers to see the light and stand down. One of three things, or a combination of them, will likely have to occur for the world’s warmongers and globalist do-gooders to lay down their arms, give up their fortunes, and close down their organizations: judgment, an American military defeat of such proportions that the delusion unravels, or economic bankruptcy.

Until one or all occur, expect more bombs to fall. The current regime campaigned on a different program, but it seems to be marching in step. As hubristic as our President is, he is not bigger than the machine of American statism. There are too many leeches for one man to drain the swamp. He may use executive power differently than his predecessors, but use it he will, giving bombastic speeches all the way to potential world war.

Believe it or not, the rest of the world does not think that what is good for America is good for them. Yet, most Americans do and cheer as the bombs fall, as do many Christians, for whom the American Flag is virtually synonymous with the Christian flag. Make no mistake, child of God. We are living on a powder keg. Christ the King holds the fuse and the match, and he may light it. Nothing about his reign or his promises to his church prevents this nation from being struck with chemical or nuclear weapons, economic collapse, or worse. His kingdom purposes are not tied to the survival of the United States. Embrace this one thought, and you are on your way to true liberty under Christ, spiritual and civil.

Recent events compel several questions. First, is it morally justified to drop bombs when there is no declared war or any warrant for it? Would infallible evidence that a foreign leader is using chemical weapons against his own people justify bombing his nation? No. It cannot be countered that these Middle Eastern peoples and nations have “sort of declared war against us.” They would have little if anything to do with us had we not permanently camped in their backyard since World War II and proclaimed ourselves their benefactors. Many are sick of our presence there. Those who want it know that they would not long survive without it. Greed, Zionism, and constant intrigue to control what happens on the other side of the world have brought us to this dangerous moment.

When our soldiers are attacked by “terrorists” – or are they freedom fighters who want freedom from us? – in these far flung and ever expanding beachheads of globalism, do they not have the right to fire back? Not really. Soldiers engaged in unjustified conflict fighting other people’s war are not martyrs or the army of the Lord marching to war. It is sickening the way that some patriotic websites compare the “sacrifices” of American soldiers to that of Jesus Christ. One site claims that an American soldier killed on the battlefield is immediately welcomed into heaven. This is blasphemous nonsense. A home invader cannot claim unjust treatment when the homeowner shoots him. I appreciate the noble calling of a soldier in many contexts, but not as a crusader of statism. Being a soldier does not make a man noble, moral, or a Christian. A Christian soldier never bases his hope of salvation on the dog tags he wears but on the blood and righteousness of Jesus Christ covering him.

But we cannot simply pull out, can we? Would this not completely destabilize the world? You mean, American withdrawal would make things worse than they are? We ask this question with a straight face? Most of the present danger is homegrown at the Pentagon and imported to nations that do not want it. God has never called this nation to be the protector of the world’s so-called innocents or the promoter of worldwide Americanism. The US military and its spy agencies have not made the world safer. Our withdrawal might make it safer in the short term and certainly would in the long-term. We have so many problems at home that the audacity of our claims to be able to solve the world’s problems would be laughable impudence, were it not that we enforce our arrogance with bombs. Can you imagine what our reaction would be if Russia or China acted so highhandedly? Aimed their missiles at us from just across the Mexican or Canadian borders?

But it is Easter, and I really do not like thinking about these things. Commentary on current events is usually a colossal waste of time. The city of man is always burning, and there is no hope or wisdom coming from that quarter. Yet, its fires affect us and will have an increasing impact upon our lives. Any war started today is bound to involve weaponry that kills tens and hundreds of thousands, if not millions more. Many of those who have their fingers on the red button are enslaved by Satan to do his will. He is a murderer, so you had better believe he is licking his chops.

Let us embrace Easter. Christ, not man, is King. He is the King of men and nations. He will have all nations brought to the obedience of his faith by no other sword than the one coming of out of his mouth, the gospel. He has his finger on all the buttons. The resurrection was followed by the ascension. The ascension means that there is another King, one Jesus, to whom the kings of the earth must give their allegiance or face his wrath (Ps. 2:12; Rev. 19:11-15).

This gospel, which was proclaimed clearly at Pentecost, poses a real challenge to the church. Most do not believe in a real King who is really reigning and who has a real law that he expects all men to obey. He is either a King in waiting or a King of a spiritual kingdom that has little to do with present realities. Easter says otherwise. He dropped a bomb on man’s pride, statism, and sin. If we do not repent, judgment follows. If we repent, his blood and righteousness will save us. He will forgive renegade kings if they will bow before him and bring their gifts to him (Ps. 72:10-11). There is hope in the present danger only in national repentance and submission to Messiah the Prince. Pray as never before for the Lord of Hosts to open the womb of regeneration.

The faithful church of Jesus Christ is the sole institution on earth that has been commissioned and empowered by the King to proclaim his peace terms. Repent and be forgiven. Resist and be judged. She does not need any impressive programs to fulfill her commission. She does not need a new message. She needs Easter. She needs to see the King in his glory at the right hand of the Father. She needs, at least in this land, a renewed outpouring of the Holy Spirit so that she understands the Scriptures, craves the pure milk of his word, and resists all counterfeits. She needs the courage that comes when we understand that the message we preach has as much to do with bombs as it does with Sabbath.

There is a power on earth far more deadly than all the bombs Satan and his henchmen can muster. It is the church’s power to remit and retain sins. The church has the keys of the kingdom. The humblest pulpit, the weakest Christian voice raised in humble defense of the crown rights of Jesus Christ, has his authority behind it. Sadly, we do not hear much of “sin, righteousness, and judgment,” but this is exactly the Spirit’s convicting work in the world (John 16:8-11). We must not allow our leaders and fellow-citizens off the hook by silence. If you do not repent, your sins are retained, for you reject Christ, his gospel and law. You will be judged in history and in hell. When God raised his Son from the dead he sealed this truth. It is our responsibility to believe and proclaim it. The sins that are wreaking havoc in the world can be forgiven and their power broken. Peace can reign through righteousness. The Lord of glory offers it to us. The church must unashamedly proclaim the forgiveness of sins through faith in his blood. When sins are forgiven, there will be peace. Speak, Christian.